NATS, the UK’s leading air traffic control provider, and Sky-Futures, a world leader in commercial drone-based inspection services and training, have unveiled a ground-breaking new combined training course for commercial pilots at a launch event featuring hi-tech drone search-and-rescue and inspection demonstrations at an emergency services training facility in Gloucestershire.

The demonstrations, which saw state-of-the-art Intel Falcon 8+ and DJI Inspire 1 drones conducting complex, high-spec inspections of mocked-up disaster sites including a collapsed building, showcased some of the practical skills-training offered by the new drone pilot ‘combined’ course.

The combined Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) course syllabus can be adapted to meet the individual needs of trainees working in specific areas such as construction, offshore oil and gas, or the emergency services for example, and encompasses in-depth theoretical instruction in airspace and safety as well as real-life scenario-based training. It is designed to ensure organisations can secure the Civil Aviation Authority permissions required for drone pilots to operate commercially, whilst providing expert guidance on using drones safely in professional or commercial environments.

Tuesday’s launch event (15 May) was held at the Sky-Futures Training Academy near Oxford, situated at the UK Fire Service College outside Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, where state-of-the-art drone pilot training facilities including mocked-up disaster scenarios including a ship, a railway line, an oil rig, metal towers and commercial buildings will be used for advanced inspection procedure training. The new combined course will also be taught at NATS’ operational air traffic control centres in Swanwick, Hampshire, and Prestwick, Ayrshire (Scotland).